Print systems conventionally include a spreader nip for spreading ink applied to a substrate during a printing process. When feeding a substrate through the spreader nip, the spreader nip often forms a non-symmetric pressure profile across its width. This non-symmetric, or unbalanced, pressure profile in the spreader nip causes the substrate to be misaligned as it is fed through the spreader nip, and causes an uneven pressure to be applied to the substrate when it is in the spreader nip such that the ink applied to the substrate is unevenly spread.
Conventional methods for balancing the pressure profile in the spreader nip are considered to be open-loop solutions that are sensitive to the geometry of the spreader nip. Accordingly, every time any aspect of the geometry of the spreader nip changes, any load balancing equations or determinations for causing a balanced pressure profile must be reevaluated by way of extensive simulation and testing.